Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: 32 degrees, hot, sunny, sticky and slightly overcast.
Happy New Year. In Brazil, it is a new year, the first Monday after Carnaval.
In theory, Brazil should roll like a heavy steam engine, seeking enough inertia from its first push of power from the boiler to move forward and gain speed.
I have written many times on the blog that Brazil’s economy should traditionally take off, with production picking up after Carnival.
Brazil is a vast country, the 5th largest in the world, with almost 220 million people.
That is a lot of people and a large market if a company knows how to tap into it, and if the country’s economy is strong and buoyant. If everybody has money and wants to spend their disposable income, it is burning a hole in their pockets and bank accounts.
Sadly, for a long time, this has not been the case in Brazil, if not ever. The majority of the population is lower-middle class or poor, with some even extremely poor. At the same time, only a small percentage is middle-class, and a minute percentage is upper-class or wealthy.
The only real reason a company would want to invest in Brazil is its large population, and, economically speaking, that is a contradiction.
Poverty and unemployment are rising, and the middle class is getting poorer and poorer. Brazil was slowly on the road to recovery and improvement under the last government under Bolsonaro as president. Still, with this re-elected left-wing socialist-communist government that does not know how to control public expenditure, inflation is rising, and growth is declining.
The upcoming presidential elections are scheduled for September and October 2026. If Lula’s government wins and secures re-election, then Brazil is effectively digging its own grave. Endemic corruption, the misappropriation of public funds, and the government’s disregard for the people are driving the final nails into its coffin.
Lula is a know-it-all, and his inflated ego makes him believe he is the be-all and end-all of politics and running Brazil. I see a power-hungry little boy in an old body who does not know when to give up or stop.
Since his government began, the administrative and international errors in managing Brazil have been endless. Every day, there is a new foolish act, mainly committed by him but also by his recently married wife and his team.
Besides the 220 million people who are suffering and enslaved by one man’s ego, which is perfectly clear to me and many others, it is also obvious that in his third government he relies on and trusts the same incompetent, poorly prepared, and corrupt politicians from his previous terms, which were marred by scandals, problems, and embarrassment.
One of his trusted right-hand henchmen was caught smuggling thousands of dollars hidden in his underwear during an international flight out of Brazil. Shockingly, that same disgraceful, hypocritical politician has now returned as the head of Lula’s government in the Brazilian Congress.
How crazy is that?
How stupid is that?
How disgraceful is that?
How can a country the size and potential of Brazil, with so much going for it, including its good, hardworking people and its unlimited natural resources, some of which are still not properly tapped, be in such a shameful and disgusting situation?
I have been in Brazil for over 35 years, and I love the country and its people. However, I am deeply disappointed with it. I thought it would realise its true potential, at least in part, during my lifetime, but I no longer believe that is possible.
Brazil is like the stripper girlfriend you love so much. She is attractive in a rough way, the sex is excellent, but you can never take her home to meet your parents!
In bed by 9 p.m.
Thank you.
Thanks for reading this blog post. Please explore my other posts and share your thoughts in the comments section.
Richard
